Here is the list of all-time rushing yard leaders in FBS college football history. Oklahoma State’s Barry Sanders leads the way with 2,628 yards in 1988.
The Boise State running back is the only active player in the all-time top 25 with 2,497 rushing yards in the 2024 regular season and the Mountain West Conference Championship Game.
*Refers to active total through December 6, 2024
Single-season college football rushing yard leader
The top 30
Oklahoma State’s Barry Sanders is the all-time rushing leader with 2,628 yards in his Heisman-winning 1988 season. Sanders is one of six of the top 30 single-season rushing leaders to win the Heisman Trophy this season. Marcus Allen, Mike Rozier, Rashaan Salaam, Ricky Williams and Derrick Henry are the others.
Derrick Henry is the player with the fewest rushing yards to break the 2,200 rushing yard mark. Most recently, Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty broke the 2,220-yard mark in 2024 and climbed into the top five single-season charts before ever playing in a conference championship game.
Here’s a look at the rest of the all-time top 30, showing every player who has broken the 2,000 rushing yard ceiling.
Notable: Bowl statistics were not included in NCAA records prior to 2002.
| rank | player | Yards (not bowl yards) | Year | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barry Sanders | 2628 | 1988 | Oklahoma State |
| 2 | Melvin Gordon | 2587 (2336) | 2014 | Wisconsin |
| 3 | Kevin Smith | 2567 (2448) | 2007 | UCF |
| 4 | Ashton Jeanty | 2497 | 2024 | Boise State |
| 5 | Marcus Allen | 2342 | 1981 | Southern California |
| 6 | Rashaad Penny | 2248 (2027) | 2017 | San Diego State |
| 7 | Derrick Henry | 2219 (1986) | 2015 | Alabama |
| 8 | Jonathan Taylor | 2194 (1989) | 2018 | Wisconsin |
| 9 | Troy Davis | 2185 | 1996 | Iowa State |
| 10 | Andrew Williams | 2177 (2102) | 2013 | Boston College |
| 11 | LaDainian Tomlinson | 2158 | 2000 | TCU |
| 12 | Mike Rozier | 2148 | 1983 | Nebraska |
| 13 | Donnel Pumphrey | 2133 (2018) | 2016 | San Diego State |
| 14 | Matt Forte | 2127 | 2007 | Tulane |
| 15 | Ricky Williams | 2124 | 1998 | Texas |
| 16 | Bryce love | 2118 (1973) | 2017 | Stanford |
| 17 | Chuba Hubbard | 2094 (1936) | 2019 | Oklahoma State |
| 18 | Larry Johnson | 2087 (2015) | 2002 | Penn State |
| 19 | Donald Brown | 2083 (1822) | 2008 | Connecticut |
| 20 | Rashaan Salaam | 2055 | 1994 | Colorado |
| 21 | Tevin Coleman | 2036 | 2014 | Indiana |
| 22 | D’Onta Foreman | 2028 | 2016 | Texas |
| 23 | Christian McCaffrey | 2019 (1847) | 2015 | Stanford |
| 24 | JJ Arrington | 2018 (1845) | 2004 | California |
| 25 | Malcolm Perry | 2017 (1804) | 2019 | marine |
| 26 | Ray Rice | 2012 (1732) | 2007 | Rutgers |
| 27 | Troy Davis | 2010 | 1995 | Iowa State |
| T-28 | JK Dobbins | 2003 (1829) | 2019 | Ohio State |
| T-28 | Jonathan Taylor | 2003 (1909) | 2019 | Wisconsin |
| 30 | Byron Hanspard | 2000 | 1996 | Texas Tech |
Navy quarterback Malcolm Perry is the only non-running back in the top 25 all-time.
For a deeper breakdown, here are the top single-season rushing leaders with and without bowl stats.
Players must run over 2,100 meters MIT Bowl Stats
- 2,850 – Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State, 1988
- 2,587 – Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin, 2014
- 2,567 – Kevin Smith, UCF, 2007
- 2,497 – Ashton Jeanty, Boise State, 2024
- 2,427 – Marcus Allen, Southern California, 1981
- 2,327 – Ricky Williams, Texas, 1998
- 2,295 – Mike Rozier, Nebraska 1983
- 2,276 – LaDainian Tomlinson, TCU, 2000
- 2,248 – Rashaad Penny, San Diego State, 2017
- 2,219 – Derrick Henry, Alabama, 2015
- 2,194 – Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin, 2018
- 2,185 – Troy Davis, Iowa State, 1996
- 2,177 – Andre Williams, Boston College, 2013
- 2158 – LaDainian Tomlinson, TCU, 2000
- 2,138 —
Rashaan Salaam, Colorado, 1994
- 2148, Mike Rozier, Nebraska, 1983
- 2133 – Donnel Pumphrey, San Diego State, 2016
- 2127 – Matt Forte, Tulane, 2007
- 2118 – Bryce Love, Stanford, 2017
Players who rush for over 2100 yards WITHOUT bowl stats
- 2,628 – Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State, 1988
- 2,497 – Ashton Jeanty, Boise State, 2024
- 2,448 – Kevin Smith, UCF, 2007
- 2,342 – Marcus Allen, Southern California, 1981
- 2,336 – Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin, 2014
- 2,185 – Troy Davis, Iowa State, 1996
- 2,158 – LaDanian Tomlinson, TCU, 2000
- 2,148 – Mike Rozier, Nebraska, 1983
- 2,127 – Matt Forte, Tulane, 2007
- 2,124 – Ricky Williams, Texas, 1998
- 2.102 – Andre Williams, Boston College, 2013
